Silicon-Germanium and Silicon-Tin Waveguides for Heterostructure OptoelectronicDevices

摘要

The goal of the work was to demonstrate the feasibility of using silicon-basedgroup IV semiconductor materials for optical and optoelectronic device applications. Waveguiding in GeSi/Si heterostructures was addressed and other silicon-based group IV alloys that could contribute different optical and/or electronic properties were investigated. Waveguiding was shown in a number of important epitaxial GeSi/Si heterostructures grown by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) which show the usefulness of such structures for both waveguiding and a wide variety of optoelectronic devices. Optical waveguiding was examined in a symmetric (Si cladding) GeSi waveguide that was about 18 percent Ge but only about 0.15 micrometers thick. Waveguiding in such a thin layer is important for realizing the possibilities of electrooptical heterojunction bipolar transistors in which the GeSi base is generally quite thin (0.1 micrometer range).